The present invention relates to a missile launching system, comprising a launch rail for attachment to an aircraft and having a substantially T-shaped longitudinal slot, and at least two hanger members for attachment to the missile at longitudinally spaced locations thereof, at least the rearmost hanger member of which having a substantially T-shaped section configured to be received in the longitudinal T-slot in the launch rail.
The invention also relates to a hanger member for attachment to a rear section of a missile for suspending and guiding the missile in a longitudinal slot of a launch rail.
Missiles carried by and launched from an aircraft are usually slidably suspended in one or more longitudinally extending slots of a launch rail by means of so-called hangers attached to the top side the missile at longitudinally spaced locations thereof and having complementary shaped sections for slidably guiding the hangers in the slots, such that the hangers will take up loads in directions both towards the aircraft (compressive forces) and away from the aircraft (tensile forces) as well as lateral forces and torques about a longitudinal axis. Two or more, normally three, such hangers are attached to the missile. Such hangers could have a substantially T-shaped cross-section, possibly in combination with one or more C-shaped hangers. During launching of the missiles within normal launching envelopes the rearmost part of the missile may hit or contact the launch rail, when only the rearmost hanger is still engaging the guide track or slot in the rail and the missile is inclined away (diving) from the rail. The power of the rear part impact may vary depending on the launching condition, but many missiles are constructed to withstand such impacts within reasonable limits. However, some types of missiles are not permitted to let their rear parts come into contact with the launch rail for safety reasons. For example, this is true for missiles equipped with a sensitive power boost in their rear part which could be seriously damaged if contacting the rail too hard during launch.
In an attempt to solve this problem temporarily, the rearmost hanger was modified so as to provide supplementary laterally extending collars on a lower part of the hanger, which, although serving as a protection that prevents the rear part of the missile from contacting the rail, i.e. taking up compressive forces when only the rearmost hanger engages the rail track during launch, cannot take up tensile forces during ordinary flight time. Since this modified rear hanger is not capable of taking up tensile forces during normal flight time, due to the fact that this rear hanger lacks lateral flanges engaging side grooves in the launch rail, the hangers located in front thereof will be subjected to higher tensile loads which affects the durability and the allowed overall load applied to the missile, thereby reducing the safe transportation time for the missiles carried by an aircraft. A reason why the lateral flanges of the rearmost hanger, which take up tensile forces during the flight of the aircraft, are not suitable during missile launch, is that these lateral flanges tend to create an undesired hinge action at the rear hanger when the foremost hangers have been disengaged from their slots in the launch rail and the missile tends to dive, thereby causing the rearmost part of the missile to move upwardly and possibly hit the launch rail. Also, such a rear hanger may cause a jam problem while sliding in the corresponding tracks of the launch rail and cause a greater air resistance of the missile.